Dress for Success
by shestarsky
Summary: Nell wants to change her appearance.
1. Chapter 1

**Dress for Success**

**Disclaimer; I don't own NCIS Los Angeles, nor do I profit from anything. I just like to play with their nice shiny toys.**

**This idea popped into my head yesterday at work and wouldn't leave til I put it on paper. Its mostly centered around Nell but you never know who might show up.**

Nell studied her reflection in the mirror trying to see what others saw when they looked at her. She had on a plaid sundress over a dark green long sleeved tee shirt with her customary dark tights and brown boots. There was nothing wrong with what she was wearing but the image it portrayed was wrong. Her clothes made her look like a young girl barely out of high school when in reality she was a woman working in highly stressful position with the government.

That was about to change.

"Kensi would you like to go shopping with me on Saturday?" Nell had stopped by the brunette agent's desk after grabbing a cup of coffee before going back upstairs.

"Sure that would be fun, are we looking for something in particular or just shopping in general? Maybe we can get a mani/pedi while we're out."

Nell bit her lip as she looked to see who was around before answering her friend's question. "Well I need to update my wardrobe maybe change my look a bit."

"Ok I can help with that. But I think the way you dress is cute why do you want to change your look?" Kensi wondered what was going on with Nell, she seemed a little unsure of herself. This was very unusual since the little redhead had never lacked for self-confidence before."

"Look I'll tell you about it on Saturday, I don't want to talk about it here. What time do you want to start, should I pick you up?"

"You're kidding right Nell; Kensi never rides with anyone she has to drive. So where are we going on Saturday?" Deeks had walked up in time to hear the end of the girl's conversation.

"You are not going anywhere Deeks; we girls however are doing girly stuff on Saturday. Nell & I are going for mani/pedi's and stuff like that. Nothing you would be interested in." Kensi had sensed that Nell didn't want anyone else to know about the shopping they were going to do and was trying to distract Deeks while she made a clean getaway.

"Come on Kensi I'm a hip kind of guy, I could definitely do a manicure, plus I've heard those pedi things are real relaxing. Let me go with you guys please."

"Really Deeks really? If you want a manicure I'll give you one, I have some lovely purple polish we can use."

"Now you're just being mean, why can't I go? I don't have anything to do this weekend. Maybe we could all watch a movie afterwards.

"Drop it Deeks, it's a girl day no guys allowed. Go do something with Callen and Sam if you need company because you are not going with us."

Before he could say anything else Eric whistled them up to the ops center. The case they were working on lasted thru out the week and by Friday the entire team was ready for a break. As everyone gathered their belongings and started to leave Kensi held back and waited for Nell to come downstairs.

"Are we still on for tomorrow?" Getting an affirmative nod from Nell she started to the door. "I'll pick you up about 9:30 and we'll head towards the mall. See you then."

Nell had almost called Kensi to cancel the shopping trip and gone by herself, but she really needed another opinion. She trusted Kensi to give her honest feedback on the clothes but knew she was going to have to tell her why she was doing this. Sure enough as soon as she got in the car Kensi had taken one look and began to ask questions.

"So tell me why do you want to change your look? If someone has said something about the way you dress tell me and I will speak to them."

"No its nothing like that, I don't quite know how to explain it. See everyone treats me like a young girl and I'm tired of it. I'm adult and I want to be treated as one." Nell just stared out the window while she spoke.

"Nobody thinks you're a young girl, we all know how valuable you are. Did one of the guys do something to hurt your feelings, was it Deeks?"

"Look Kensi it's different for you; you're a field agent and you look like one so it doesn't really matter how you dress. All anyone has to do is take one look at you and they can see how capable you are." She took a deep breathe and continued.

"It's not the same for me; I am a little younger than you guys plus there's the height thing and I just look young. I know you guys trust me and depend on me to help you in the field but I want to look the part too."

"This is the way I've dressed for years and its time to change. My mom's told me for before that if I want to be treated like a woman than I need to start dressing like one, not like a little girl still in high school." She paused and rubbed the material of her plaid sundress between her fingers.

"Ok I can understand what you are saying did you have a particular look in mind that you are going for?" Kensi had pulled into a parking spot and they both got out of the car.

"How about the way Julia Roberts dressed in Erin Brokovich, people took her seriously in that movie." Nell shot an innocent look at Kensi taking note of the horror on the brunettes face.

"Ha gotcha on that one." She giggled as relief flooded over the other woman's face. "I'm not looking for anything quite so drastic; maybe some straight skirts and pants in subdued colors with a couple of blazers."

"That sounds like a good place to start with maybe some better fitting jeans for the days you want to go casual but still look good. Of course you will have to get some shoes to go with everything." Kensi was really getting into it now.

"I just love to shop for shoes, hey lets get you some new boots too."

**I hope you guys liked it, please give me some feedback. I have the second chapter already done but I need to know if anyone is interested in reading more.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**Shopping is done, now its time for reactions to Nell's new looks. I need to make a statement here, I love the character of Nell and her quirkiness, I am not trying to make her change herself to fit someone else's image. That would be a bad thing. I am just wanted to write something cute and fluffy.**

Nell gave her self one final look in the mirror before leaving home. She had paired a navy blue pencil skirt with a white silk shirt and a matching blazer, completing her look with a pair of low heeled black boots. Taking Kensi's advice about adding a little color she added a red belt and went out the door before she could chicken out and change into her old comfortable clothes.

As usual she was one of the first to get to work, the only one there before her was Eric. Taking a deep breath she opened the door and went in.

"Good Morning Eric did you have a nice weekend?" Nell went to her desk shoved her purse in a drawer and turned on her computer before turning to face her co-worker.

He was watching her with a surprised look on his face his hands frozen over the keyboard. "Ah yea it was fine just the normal stuff; surfing, video games hanging out with friends. Is something special happening today, a meeting I forgot or something?"

"Nothing going on that I'm aware why do you ask?"

"Well you're all dressed up like the director's in town, or maybe a job interview. Please tell me you're not looking for another job Nell." He was starting to panic at the idea of her leaving.

"Wow don't go crazy on me ok I just felt like dressing a little different. Is there something wrong with my clothes?"

"You look great, different but great maybe a little older than usual." Eric turned bright red as he stammered out a reply. "Hey I don't mean you look old I meant more mature, look just forget I said anything you look great as usual."

Nell turned back to her work a satisfied smile creeping over her face at his reaction.

The rest of the day flew by as the team spent time wrapping up the last details from last weeks mission. While there had been a few raised eyebrows at her new outfit no one else had made any comments.

Nell continued to wear her new clothes all week mixing and matching the few items she had purchased into several new outfits. She had saved her favorite item; a blue wrap dress paired with a pair of nude pumps that made her legs look longer for Friday. The dress itself really made the most of her petite figure easily the most attractive item she had ever worn.

Kensi had really enjoyed watching Nell this week; the new clothes had really brought out a new confidence in the intelligence analyst. While she had always been confident in her ability to do her job there had been a little vulnerability in Nell's personal interactions with others. She had never believed that she was fully accepted to the team always hesitant to join their after work activities. It wasn't that the clothes had changed Nell into someone else but that they made her feel better.

She wasn't the only one who had noticed a change in the small redhead; all the guys had looked but wisely kept their thoughts to themselves. This was a good thing because Kensi would have taken issue with anyone trying to damage Nell's new self confidence.

"Hey Kensi was this new wardrobe what you guys were doing last week?" Deeks had walked over to her desk after watching Nell walk past them to get to the coffee room.

"So what if it was? You got something you want to say about it?"

"Slow down there mama bear I was only going to say how nice she's been looking this week. Not that she doesn't always look nice but its different look now a bit more grown up." The shaggy blonde took a minute to study the analyst as she walked by.

"That dress she's wearing today is smoking, who knew there was a little temptress hiding inside our Nell."

Kensi shot to her feet and slugged him in the arm "Back off Romeo don't you even think about hitting on her. She is so not your type."

"Oh don't worry Kens we all know exactly who my type is" Deeks laughed at the look on her face. "I only wanted to tell you that you guys did a great job with the new clothes."

"Shut up Deeks and get to work those reports aren't going to write themselves."

"Exactly my thoughts Miss Blye now have either of you seen Mr. Callen or Mr. Hanna this morning?" Hetty had once again appeared from nowhere.

"I think they were making a stop on the way in to check out that warehouse that Eric showed us yesterday. It's the one that's been rumored to be the site for the weapons auction for next week."

"Very well please ask Mr. Callen to see me when he arrives, I have questions about his latest expense report."

Hetty continued on to her office taking a sip of tea before starting to check out the numerous reports that had been placed in her in basket overnight. As she finished reading Callen's report she found herself indulging in a smile at his latest attempt to explain why he had once again destroyed the expensive wardrobe issued to him for his last job.

Looking up she rested her eyes on Nell as she descended the stairs into the bullpen noting with approval the lovely picture she made in the blue dress. "Miss Jones would you come to my office when you are finished with your task?"

"Of course Hetty, is there something you need me to do?" Nell wondered what her boss wanted.

"I wanted to compliment you on your new wardrobe, it's a lovely new look for you. I am particularly fond of this lovely dress you are wearing today." Hetty paused and touched the sleeve of Nell's dress. "This color blue is quite appealing and somehow familiar, where have I seen it before?"

Nell blushed a bit but did not comment on why that blue might be familiar, after all the color had been the deciding factor in splurging on this dress.

Patting her arm Hetty turned back to her desk "That's all dear I just wanted to let you know you efforts have not gone unnoticed."

As Nell walked away Callen and Sam walked in deep in some minor argument as usual. Stopping to stow his bag by his desk Callen walked over and took a seat in front of Hetty.

"I heard you wanted to see me about my expense report." He gave her his trademark smile usually guaranteed to get him what he wanted as he looked at her with his sparkling blue eyes.

As the diminutive leader proceeded to lecture her best agent for destroying valuable government property the connection was made. The lovely blue dress worn by her Intel analyst was very similar to the intensely blue eyes of the senior agent sitting in front of her.

**Who wouldn't want a dress the same color as Callen's eyes. Let me know how you liked this chapter please.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

It had been a mostly uneventful day; no new missions had popped up though they were still working on the rumored weapons auction scheduled for next week. The team has spent a lot of the day up in the op center trying to track down more information from various sources.

Nell and Eric in particular had spent a lot of time tracing rumors and sources for any hint of information.

While the rest of the team had already seen what she was wearing today and offered several compliments Callen and Sam had not been around until mid morning. It was when Eric whistled them up for the first briefing that they had a chance to see how she looked today.

Since there was one opinion she really wanted Nell had her eyes glued to the door when the pair walked in.

Sam had glanced in her direction and moved on before his eyes came back for a second look, sending her a thumbs up and approving smile. If she hadn't been looking for it she might have missed Callen's reaction; there was a slight pause in his forward motion, a quick flit of his eyes from the top of her head to the bottom of her feet. His blue eyes seemed to darken for a second before he continued in to the room without acknowledging her at all.

While the main purpose behind changing her look had been to change her image at work there had been a small part of the decision based on her feelings for G Callen. From the moment she had laid eyes on him Nell had experienced a sense of attraction stronger than any she had felt before. At first she had attempted to treat it as a minor crush on someone that was dangerously attractive that would go away over time.

Unfortunately that had not happened, if anything the attraction had grown stronger with every passing day. She had managed to keep her feelings to herself not letting anyone know about her intense feelings for the senior agent. Nell knew Callen did not see her in any way but that of a coworker; he was friendly but not overly so.

Once again her mothers comment flared in her mind _If you want to be seen as a woman than you need to dress and act like a woman._ Keeping that thought in mind Nell stood up and presented the information she had gathered in a professional and concise manner.

"Thanks for the hard work guys let me know if you find anything else." Callen tilted his head in Eric and Nell's direction before turning back to the rest of the team. "Unless someone has something else to contribute we need to start contacting any local contacts we have."

"Deeks take Kensi and tap in to your LAPD connections. Sam and I will go shake a few other bushes. Eric & Nell let me know if you find anything else, otherwise we all meet back her in a few hours."

"I'll meet you downstairs Deeks I want to speak to Nell" Kensi turned back and went towards the op center. As she got to the door Kensi saw the wistful way her friend was looking at Callen who was still studying the intel displayed on the big screen.

She's got a crush on Callen. I wonder how I missed that. As she crossed over to speak to Nell he looked up and raised an eyebrow in question.

"Sorry Callen I wanted to speak to Nell for a minute, it won't take long." She continued on her path wondering what was going on behind those blue eyes.

"Hey Nell you look really nice today, that dress is killer on you. In fact its too good just for the office, if things wrap up nicely by the end of the day lets go out for a drink."

"Sure that sounds nice check back with me at the end of the day." Nell turned back to her screen as Kensi walked out leaving her alone in the room with Callen, Eric having left to speak with Hetty.

She had no idea how he moved so quickly to stand behind her. One minute he was on the other side of the room the next he was right behind her leaning down as if looking at her computer before speaking quietly to her.

"The new look you've had all week really works for you Nell, it projects a different image one that will get you the respect you deserve."

Shocked that he had noticed the change Nell could barely get words out of her mouth. "Thank you Callen."

Looking up to see why he hadn't left yet she saw him frozen in place. Following his gaze to see what he was looking at she saw that the fold of her dress had fallen away from her legs showing off a lot more than she realized. When she reached down to pull the fold of the dress back over her leg it broke his concentration causing him to move away.

Just as she was starting to relax Callen leaned back down and whispered in her ear his warm breath sending shivers down her spine.

"However this dress will get you something else if you're not careful." As he stood to leave he ran a finger over the soft fabric on her shoulder. "You really shouldn't wear something this pretty to work, its very distracting."

After he had left the room she reached up to check that the heat from his finger had not burned thru the fabric and left a mark on her skin.

Nell continued to sit for a few minutes in a daze wondering if she had imagined the last few moments before turning back to work.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

**Still don't own NCIS Los Angeles or profit from the show or its characters. Still wishing I did.**

**This is a really long chapter since I've made you wait for it.**

Everyone else had left the bullpen when Kensi sent Nell a text that she was ready to go. Waiting by the stairs she hoped it was all right that she had invited the rest of the team to join them for the evening. Having seen the way Nell looked at Callen earlier and noticed how long it had taken him to leave the op center after everyone else she was eager to see how the two acted around each other in a non working atmosphere.

"Hey Kensi where are we going" Nell came to an abrupt stop when she saw the brunette "You changed clothes, wow you look really nice."

Kensi did a little twirl to show off the short black dress and heels "I didn't want you to be the only one in a dress tonight so I got Hetty to fix me up. Let's just hope I don't spill anything on the outfit because she'll take it out of my hide. You ready to go?"

"Yes I'm ready so where are we going tonight? Did Deeks manage to get his self invited along?" Nell pulled on her short leather jacket and headed towards the door.

"Oh I know a nice little place over near my apartment and yes Deeks is going to meet us there. In fact I asked the rest of the team to come along, hope that's ok with you." Glancing over to see Nell's reaction she pulled onto the road.

"Sure why would I mind, did they all say they would come? I would think most of the guys would have plans since its Friday night."

Kensi smiled a little as she drove "Well Deeks of course; Sam's going to stop in for a little bit, Eric will be there and so will Hetty." She was going to make her ask about the last member of the team just because she could.

"Um what about Callen did he have a date or something?" Nell tried to ask the question casually not wanting to expose her feelings about the agent in question.

"Oh yea I thought I said he was coming so it will be all of us kind of a team bonding thing. You know how fond Hetty is of bonding events. At least there's no karaoke involved this time."

"When did you guys do karaoke, I would have loved to heard that."

"It was a long time ago; we'll have to do it again sometime since we have added you and Deeks to the team. What do you think he would pick some hair band from the 80's?"

"No definitely a boy band, how about you who's your muse Kensi? I can see you doing something like _Hit Me With Your Best Shot _or _I Love Rock and Roll_."

"Either one of those two would be great; maybe we could do a duet? Here we are let's go see what kind of trouble the guys have started already."

As the two women walked thru the doorway and looked around for the members of their group several male heads turned to admire the new additions to the clientele. Eyes followed their progress towards the table of men and one woman waiting for them before looking away.

"Aren't we the luckiest guys here tonight, you ladies look amazing." Sam was the first to notice their arrival standing and pulling out the chair beside him for Nell while Kensi settled in between Deeks and Eric across from her.

As Nell settled in her seat and turned to say hello to everyone she noticed that her seat had placed her right beside Callen who was busy talking to Hetty. Glad to see he was busy for a few minutes which would give her time to calm her nerves before having to speak to him. When he finished his conversation with Hetty he greeted Kensi before shifting in Nell's direction and giving her a smile.

The arrival of the waitress to take drink orders afforded her even more time to settle down. Leaning across the table to speak to Eric she missed the appraising look that Kensi gave her and Callen.

"Eric it's nice to see you away from work have you guys been here long?" She leaned back in her chair as the waitress begins to pass drinks around the table.

"Oh I guess we've been here about 15 or 20 minutes. We used to do this all the time but it's been a while, I guess the last time was the night Dom got grabbed." Eric took a drink of beer before continuing "That overshadowed how much fun we had going out together but enough time has passed that everyone's ok with it now."

The conversation at the table flowed as they slowly relaxed and put the weeks events behind them. Eric and Deeks got into a heated debate about the best surfing spots and set up a time to meet and explore a few of them the next day. Kensi decided she needed to go with them to judge who rode what wave the best. Hetty entertained the entire group with some stories from her past before deciding to call it a night.

"This had been fun guys but I need to get home to my family. Have a good time and don't let me hear about any of you driving if you've had too much to drink, that's what taxi's are for." Sam gave Nell a little hug shook hands with Deeks and walked over to Kensi to give her a goodbye hug also.

"Sam would you mind giving me a ride back to the office, I came over with Deeks and Callen but I don't think they're ready to leave yet." Eric had been watching the flirting going on between the blonde detective and the brunette agent for awhile and knew they would be here for a while.

"Yes I see what you mean about that, say your good byes and let's get out of here before I see Deeks do something crazy that will make me hurt him. How about you G need a lift?" Sam looked over at where his partner was leaning back against the wall watching the others.

"I'm good Sam only had the one beer before I switched to club soda. I'll stay and be the chaperone for the evening and make sure they all get home safe. Call me tomorrow if you want to do something."

"Sure G I'll call if I don't have too many things going on around the house, maybe you can come over for dinner or something. The kids have been asking for Uncle G."

As Sam and Eric walked away Nell once again became aware of how close she was sitting to Callen. As she went to move her chair over his hand dropped on her shoulder to stop her movement.

"Where are you going Nell, if you move to far away I'll have to shout to make you hear me. So why don't you tell me what you think is going on between our friends over there."

As she leaned back to get a better view of the couple sitting on the other side of the table Nell realized that he had left his arm on the back of her chair using his fingers to rub the fabric of her dress. Her senses had been in an uproar all night as every time Callen shifted in his seat either his leg or arm had rubbed against her sending little shivers running thru her body. She had struggled to remain calm and serene on the exterior while her interior had heated with every move he made. A couple of times when he moved there seemed to be no reason other than to make her aware he was there. As if she didn't know he was sitting there in that beautiful blue shirt and black leather jacket.

She had switched to drinking water or soda quite some time ago so as not to lose control of her actions, not being used to spending so much time in such close contact with the incredibly sexy senior agent. Nell was determined that she would not make a fool of herself in any way tonight.

"Oh well you want to know what I think about Kensi and Deeks? Ok it looks to me as if they've become very close and have created a great working partnership."

Bending over he whispered in her ear "You know I don't mean their partnership at work, I want to know if you think they've already moved to the next level in their personal relationship."

"Why ask me, surely you have your own thoughts as to what's going on between them. How would I know more than you do after all you've know her longer than anyone else?" As she spoke she looked up before noticing how close his face was to hers.

"Yes I do have my own thought on the situations but I wanted yours; as a woman you will have a different view point that I would. Also as her friend you might have heard or seen something that I didn't."

Backing away from him slightly Nell got a determined look on her face. "There is no way I would betray anything Kensi has or has not told be about her feelings for Deeks. How could you think I would do such a thing?"

"Slow down Nell, I'm not asking for a betrayal I just want your opinion. I need to know if what's going on is going to be a problem on the job that's all." With that he pulled back from her looking at Kensi with a worried look on his face. "Look she's like my little sister and I don't want her to get hurt again. What happened with her ex almost destroyed her and I will do everything in my power not to let something like that happen again."

About that time there was a loud burst of laughter from Kensi and Deeks stood up and stumbled off to the bathroom. When she turned to look at her companions at the table there was no missing the bright eyes and flushed cheeks of someone who had drank a little too much.

Nell had calmed down now that she knew Callen's questions were guided by his affection for Kensi and not just a desire to know her private business. She thought it spoke volumes about the type of person he was that he cared so much for a friend. She smiled at him to let him know that she wasn't angry at him.

"Ok I believe its time to call it a night; I'll go pay the check if you'll start getting them ready to go. When I come back we'll figure who's driving whom home tonight." Watching Callen walk away she was struck once more with how attractive he was.

"Come on Kensi get your jacket on and let's get ready to go, here comes Deeks now."

As Deeks helped Kensi on with her jacket Callen came back to the table and picked up Nell's leather coat and held it for her to slip into. Leading the way out of the club he led them over to where Kensi's SRX was parked beside his jag.

"Ok since Deeks rode over with me and you came with Kensi why don't you drive her home and we'll follow you guys. Once we get her inside you can ride with me to drop off Deeks and I'll give you a ride home. Does that work for you Nell?"

Nodding her head in acceptance Nell climbed in and started the car waiting to make sure Kensi was buckled in before driving off.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

**Here is the next update, sorry it took so long. I never know where the story will go so I hope everyone thanks its ok.**

Nell drove carefully frequently checking the headlights behind her half of her hoping they had disappeared and half of her squeeing with joy on the inside when she saw they were still there. The thought of being in a small confined area with G Callen caused the butterflies in her stomach to launch into a furious flight. At least they would have Deeks with them for part of the ride; maybe she should have him drop her off first? No she could handle being in a car with Callen, it was just a short ride no big deal.

"Hey little Nell thanks for driving me home, you know you look really pretty tonight, no pretty isn't the right word. Sexy yea that's it you look real sexy in that blue dress." Kensi had swung around in her seat and was giving her a big grin. "I'm not the only one that thought you were hot tonight. Hey that dress is the same color as Callen's eyes did you know that?" The brunette gave a snicker and reached over to poke a finger at Nell's shoulder.

"Come on Kensi stop that I'm trying to drive." Nell gave her friend a smile "Thanks for the compliment I do feel a little sexy in this dress. It's so soft and silky and such a pretty color, but I hadn't noticed it was the same color as Callen's eyes why I don't believe I've ever noticed what color his eyes are." She blushed a little as the lie left her lips, of course she knew what color those eyes were, she could picture them with her own eyes closed.

"Silly Nell don't even try that crap with me, remember I have special agent powers and I know you're lying. Besides everyone notices his eyes; men, women, and children everyone that ever sees Callen's eyes has them burned into their memory banks." Kensi giggled and rolled down the window "I may be drunk but I'm not stupid you know I've seen the way you go all goggly eyed over our Mr. Callen. Hey are the guys still back there?"

"I have never gone goggly eyed over anyone especially Callen. Did you ever consider that since you are drunk your _special agent powers _might be drunk also?" When she didn't respond Nell looked over to see Kensi with her upper body shoved out the window waving to the car behind them. "What are you doing, get back in the car now before you fall out."

Meanwhile in the other car.

"Hey Callen this is a really nice car much nicer than my old heap. Exactly how much does a senior agent in charge make?" Deeks patted the console and squeezed the leather seat. "It must be a whole lot more than the rest of us."

As he reached out towards the stereo Callen gave him a stern look "Don't touch anything Deeks everything is just the way I want it."

"Ok how about some tunes, a ride this nice deserves some sweet music to drive with. Oh hey look Kensi's waving at us whoa she's really hanging out there, I hope she doesn't fall out." Deeks frowned at the thought. "Maybe you should pull up closer and tell her to get back in the car; I don't want a broken partner. That would be very bad, come on Callen don't let her get broken."

"Look Deeks she's back in the car now stop whining. Grown men don't whine." Sending a glance over at the detective to judge how drunk he was Callen decided to do some probing. "How are you and Kensi getting along these days, everything going ok?"

"We're fine couldn't be better she's a great partner best I've had."

"Really Deeks you know I'm not blind, none of are. Everyone sees what's going on between you two. I just need to know what you're going to do about it." He shot an inquiring look at Deeks.

"None of your business Callen you need to back off. Whatever is between me and my partner is just that between me and her. I don't pry into your private life and you need to keep out of mine." He knew he was risking a lot of pain talking back to Callen like this but it really was none of his business.

"Ok Deeks you've got a point just know that if you hurt her I'll be coming to see you."

"Yea and I suppose you'll bring Sam along for back up right?" Marty was looking kind of nervous he knew they thought of Kensi as a little sister.

Callen stopped the car and turned to face Deeks "No it'll just be me. I won't need backup. You got that?"

"Yes I do. Listen I would never do anything to hurt her, you have to know that."

"Fine let's get back on the road and catch up to the girls, don't want to keep them waiting." He moved the car back into traffic.

Back to the girls.

Keeping her eyes on the road Nell reached over and pulled Kensi's shoulder pushing her back into her seat. "Ok Nell I'm in its no big deal, I've done worse stuff with Deeks all the time."

"Well I'm not Deeks and don't have any hazard driving training so stay in the car!"

"Ok I'm in and I'll stay in so what were we talking about, oh yeah your thing for Callen. How's that working out for you Nell, seen any action yet?"

"Look I'm going to say it one more time so pay attention; I don't have a thing for Callen, he's practically my boss and that would be so wrong. I can't imagine why you think such a thing; oh I know you're confusing me with you and your thing for Deeks." Nell snuck a t look at Kensi seeing a soft look come over her face.

"No I don't think so Deeks is my partner that's all nothing else."

"Yeah right you just keep on thinking that girlfriend, you're not fooling anyone not even yourself."

Kensi turned her face to the window and just stared out at the night for a while finally she turned back around. "Ok Nell I'll admit to a thing with Deeks when you admit to your feelings for Callen. Until then lets just not talk about it, ok?" She smiled at the analyst and pointed to the apartments coming up. "That's my place up ahead on the right."

"Thanks Kensi I see it." Nell pulled the car into the parking spot and started to gather her belongings. "Look anytime you need or want to talk about stuff I'm here ok?"

Nell got out of the car and handed the keys to Kensi as Callen pulled up behind the SRX. Kensi walked over and gave her a hug pausing to whisper in her ear "Same here ok? Now enjoy your ride home and don't say I never did anything for you."

Walking over to the Jag Kensi leaned in the window to talk to Callen for a moment waiting as Deeks got out of the passenger seat. Callen got out to and walked over to Nell after shaking Deeks hand and watching him and Kensi walk away.

"Where are they going? I thought we were giving him a ride home."

"Oh they decided to watch a movie so he'll sack out on the couch and Kensi will drive him home in the morning. Hop in and we'll get on our way." Putting his hand at the small of her back Callen guided her to the car and opened the door. Making herself comfortable she watched him walk in front of the car sighing over how handsome he was before telling herself to get a grip and not do anything stupid.

Taking his seat he reached to start the car before looking over at her his blue eyes darkening a bit as he looked her over from top to bottom. Putting the car in gear he drove them out of the lot and headed towards the freeway.

"Do you want to go straight home Nell? I was thinking about taking a drive down by the beach to blow the cobwebs out." He gave her a little smile "Want to come along?"

"Sure that sounds great let's do it." Good lord could she sound any stupider. Settling back in to the soft leather seat Nell tried to relax and enjoy the opportunity to spend some time with him. Closing her eyes for a moment she drank in the wonderful smell of expensive leather and enticing man when she heard a gentle swoosh.

**Well there you go. I'm anixously awaiting your comments.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6 **

Feeling a cool breeze waft thru the car Nell looked up and saw the night sky realizing Callen had opened the moon roof.

"That's not too much wind I hope? I've always enjoyed driving at night with the breeze blowing thru and the music blasting." As he spoke Callen reached out and switched on the radio to a station playing classic rock and roll.

"No it feels really nice after being in the club all night. This car has a very smooth ride, is it yours or a company car?"

"Oh the Jag is mine; I don't drive it very often mostly because Sam really likes to drive. Have to keep the partner happy you know." By this time they had reached the freeway leaving the slower surface streets behind. The Jag accelerated smoothly soon leaving the other traffic in the distance.

Once he had settled at a comfortable speed he looked over to see how she was doing enjoying the site of her face and body illuminated by the interior lights of the car. Nice he thought, she looks like she belongs there.

"So do we have a destination, someplace special we're going to?"

Callen turned and gave her his smirk "Too out of control for you Nell? You can't enjoy a nice drive by the ocean without a specific destination?" He laughed at the shocked look on her face as he turned to face the road.

"Hey I can be just as spontaneous as the next person, a nice drive to nowhere in the middle of the night sounds wonderful." Pausing for a moment to chew her lip Nell glanced over to see the smile on his face. "Are you implying I have control issues?"

"Come on Nell you have to admit that you like to be in charge of things. I don't think I've ever met anyone that was as organized as you are, don't think I haven't noticed how everything in your sphere of the world has to be just so." Once again he looked over and smiled with a twinkle in his blue eyes remembering when he had purposefully moved something on her desk a few inches just to see how quickly she moved it back to its original position.

She was speechless; who the hell did he think he was criticizing her like that. He made it sound like she was set in her ways like a little old lady with OCD. Why had she ever been attracted to this brute in the first place? About that time she looked up to see him smiling at her, ok that's why it's those damm blue eyes. They just suck you in and make you have all kinds of dangerous thoughts.

"Well if I'm such an uptight person with control issues why did you invite me for a drive?" Sitting up a little straighter she didn't wait for an answer. "Besides you have no room to speak, when have you ever let anyone else be in charge?"

"Come on Nell, I didn't mean to insult you. I was just teasing you a bit, I asked you to come with me because I wanted to spend some time with you. Get to know you a little bit away from work." Seeing an exit coming up he smoothly changed lanes and headed towards the public parking area by the shore. "Oh, and if I remember correctly I get paid to be in charge."

After turning off the ignition he turned in his seat to face her "I've known everyone else on the team for years, they are like a family to me. But you haven't been around that long. I thought we needed some time to get to know each other, ok?"

As he waited for her reply Callen couldn't help but notice how the heat of anger had put an attractive flush to her cheeks and a spark to her eyes. Having thought she looked nice before he was amazed at how attracted to her he was now. All he wanted to do was reach out and trace his fingers down her soft pink cheek pausing to trace the outline of her lips before allowing his hand to drift down her throat descending to slide under the soft blue **WHOA. **

Where did that thought come from, he was dangerously close to doing something incredibly stupid. Nell was a co-worker; he had a rule about not dating co-workers. Even if she didn't handle a gun and work as a field agent she was off limits. For one thing look at how young she was, he was a dirty old man destined for a special hell for thinking those kind of thoughts about sweet little Nell.

"Oh, ok sure that makes sense I guess. We're here now, at the beach. Do you want to get out or what?" Why was he looking at her like that? The way his eyes had darkened almost made her think he was going to kiss her, yea right G Callen would never want to kiss little ole Nell Jones.

"Yea let's get out for a bit if you don't think you'll be too cold." Getting out of the car he walked around and opened her door. "Well there's no way you'll be walking on the beach in those shoes."

"No problem I'll just take them off, give me a minute." Nell slipped both shoes off and turned her back to him to pull off the thigh high stockings she had been wearing. "There I'm ready for a walk on the wild side, now how about you Callen don't you want to take off your shoes and walk barefoot thru the sand and sea?"

"Well I can hardly say no at this point can I?" How he managed to get the words out he would never know. Just the sight of her pulling the stockings off had been incredibly arousing even though he could only see her from the back; there was just something about a woman wearing stockings.

He pulled off his boots and socks and shoved them in the back of the car. "After you Miss Jones."

**Did anyone catch the Firefly reference? **


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Callen guided Nell over the where the sand was a little firmer, taking her arm when she tripped over a small piece of driftwood.

"Are you ok Nell; we can head back to the car if you want to." He smiled down at her before turning back to watch the ocean.

"I'm fine Callen; I've always loved the water. It's so peaceful looking at night when there aren't a lot of people around to get in the way." She lifted her face up to feel the breeze blowing by. "Look at the moon; it's so bright and shiny tonight."

Following her pointing finger he admired the moon and thought to his self that it wasn't the only thing that was bright and shiny. "How are you liking working at NCIS Nell, is it everything you thought it would be?"

"Oh Callen there is no way I could have ever imagined what it would be like to work with you guys. I had no idea how dangerous this job could be." She flushed a little bit under his gaze. "Not my part, I mean you guys. You risk your life on a daily basis; I can't imagine how it must feel when you walk out that door, never knowing if you'll survive to walk back thru it again."

"You don't think about it; if you did there is no way anyone would be able to go out there." His eyes dulled a little as he remembered some agents that would never come back thru the door. "All any of us can do is try and keep the reason why we do it in our minds. To know that we are saving lives and preventing our country from being taken down is what we have to keep in mind."

They walked a little further in silence each lost in their own thoughts. All of a sudden Callen stopped walking and bent down to grab a seashell and stick it in his jacket pocket.

"Anyway what you and Eric do is very important to us; there's no way we could accomplish half the stuff we do if you guys weren't there to feed us the Intel we needed." Stopping to look at the ocean and then at her he grabbed her hand and begin pulling her closer to the water. "Now that's enough serious talk, how about a swim Nell? Don't you want to show me how good you are at water sports?"

"Stop!" Do not pull me into that water G. Callen." She yanked at her hand in an effort to get away from him; it was like trying to pull her hand out of solid concrete. "This is a new dress and I don't want to get it wet."

Letting go of her hand he walked over to the edge of the water and just stood there as the waves washed over his feet.

"Ok, since its such a pretty dress and you look so amazing in it I wont get you wet." Callen paused to take a good luck at her, noticing how the snug blue dress displayed her petite form, his eyes blazing when the breeze blew the sudd of the dress open showing off her shapely leg. Where were these thoughts coming from?

"Since when did you become such a water baby? I know that Eric and Deeks both love to surf but I've never heard you did." She stood a bit further back trying to stay out of his reach.

"Oh I love the ocean; it's were I spend a lot of my down time. I just don't prattle on about it, got to keep some things private." He turned back to her "Come on over Nell, let the water wash over your feet, it's very soothing. I promise I won't try to throw you in."

Taking the hand he offered she walked over to stand beside him enjoying the peaceful feeling of the waves rushing back and forth over her lower legs. When the back and forth motion made her a little unsteady Callen put his arm around her and pulled her to his side to stabilize her position.

"Wouldn't it be nice to just stay here all night enjoying the peace and calmness?" He mumbled against her ear, his warm breath sending a small shiver down her spine.

"I'm sorry Nell; you must be cold. Come on we'll go back to the car and I'll take you home." Holding her hand he begins to guide her back the way they had come." Thanks for spending time with me out here, I usually come out by myself. It was nice to have someone to share this with."

Nell was amazed she could still walk and speak like a normal person when she was so overwhelmed by feelings. As if it wasn't enough of a shock that he had wanted to spend time alone with her, he had also held her hand and thanked her for sharing time with him. Did he really not know the effect he had on her?

"I enjoyed it Callen, thanks for bringing me along with you. I know I'll sleep better tonight just for being here and winding down."

"No problem, maybe we could do it again sometime if you want. Unless it will cause a problem between you and Eric, I wouldn't want to interfere in your relationship."

"What are you talking about? Eric's just my friend; I mean we hang out and sometimes go to the movies but that's it." She had stopped walking and just stood there looking at him. "Does everyone think me and Eric have something going on?"

"I don't know about anyone else, it just looked that way to me; the way you guys always huddle together along with the way he looks at you." Callen had stopped walking also and was looking down at her face, his blue eyes concentrating on her face.

"Honestly can't a man and a woman be friends without everyone thinking they are in a romance." Nell hadn't noticed he was staring. "Believe me I've made it plain to Eric that he's just not my type."

Looking up she forgot what else she had been going to say, losing herself in his gaze.

Reaching out he put one finger under her chin and lifted it up "Well I guess we'll have to figure out what is your type wont we?" Leaning over he placed a gentle kiss on her lips before turning around and guiding her back to the car.

As he opened the car door and helped her in Nell remained speechless, just watching as he closed the door and walked around to get in. An image of her "type" popped in her head- a compact body wearing a pair of dark jeans and a blue button down shirt topped with a black leather jacket, his handsome face dominated by intense blue eyes. Damm if the man sitting beside her didn't fit that image perfectly.

"It's late and I had better get you home." He drove out of the lot and entered the freeway singing under his breath with the radio. "What's wrong Nell, you're awfully quite over there."

"Nothing I must be more tired than I thought. Thanks for taking me to the beach, I had a wonderful time." She smiled and turned to watch him as they drove thru the city.

"You don't have to walk me up Callen, I'll just say goodnight here." She bent over to grab her shoes and purse before turning to open the door.

"Now what kind of gentleman would I be if I didn't walk you to the door? Why Hetty would wreak havoc upon me if I let you walk up by yourself." Callen helped her out of the car and escorted her to the door, taking the key and pushing the door open for her.

"Good night Nell, see you soon." He bent down and ghosted a light kiss over her lips before walking away.

Standing there in a daze Nell touched her lips with her fingers "Good night Callen, drive safe." As she turned to close the door she caught a flash of movement. Looking up she saw him coming back towards her.

"Here take this, it reminds me of you; small, perfectly proportioned and very delicate."

He ran back to the car and drove away leaving her holding a small sand colored shell with a pink interior. Oh yeah she definitely knew what her type was. Now if she could just figure out a way to become his type.


End file.
